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Overlapping districts

Each board of trade registered under the Board of Trade Act (BOTA) has a district associated with it. This is the territory in which the board of trade carries out its activities.

As part of the registration process, each board of trade provides Corporations Canada with a spelled out description of the district on its Certificate of formation. The board of trade also provides a map with the district's boundaries marked on it. The spelled out description and boundaries on the map must match.

Generally, the district of a board of trade is unique and does not overlap with the district of another registered board of trade. If an application is received for registration, or change of district, and the application would result in districts overlapping, there are some special considerations.

Corporations Canada will encourage the applicant to communicate with the other board of trade to see if the overlap issue can be resolved. This may include:

changing the proposed district to avoid the overlap

requesting, if the other board of trade is inactive, that board of trade to dissolve or

requesting, if the other board of trade is active, that board of trade to change its district to avoid the overlap.

BOTA requires registration applications that involve overlapping districts to be approved by the Governor-in-Council.

If the district is to be approved with an overlap, both boards of trade will need to consent to the overlap.

Additional requirements in the process

If a registration application would result in districts overlapping, the application must include a statutory declaration that indicates:

the facts with respect to the overlapping districts

the population of the district of the existing board of trade

the population of the district of the proposed new board of trade

the population of the district of the existing board of trade if its district is reduced by the overlapping area

any facts or considerations that support the creation of the new board of trade.

You must have a letter of consent from the existing board of trade. If the board has already consented, a copy must be sent to Corporations Canada.

If the existing corporation has not consented yet, you must send, by certified post, a copy of the statutory declaration to the corporation. You must also include a covering letter explaining the situation and giving the existing corporation an opportunity to object before a specified date, which is at least 30 days after the date of the letter. A copy of the letter must also be sent to Corporations Canada.

Governor-in-Council approval

BOTA requires the Governor-in-Council to make the decision on any registration applications involving overlapping districts.

The Governor-in-Council is the Governor General acting on the advice of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. Decisions of the Governor in Council, called “Orders in Council”, are notices of an administrative decision made by the federal cabinet and signed by the Governor General.

After receiving a complete application that is deemed acceptable, Corporations Canada will prepare the required documentation and submit the request to the Governor-in-Council. Neither the Minister of Innovation, Science or Economic Development nor Corporations Canada can make the decision.

The process of obtaining Governor-in-Council approval can take many months. Corporations Canada will inform you when the process is complete.